INDEPENDENT PURSUIT ATLANTIC CROSSING 2018 (Part 3)
SEPTEMBER 2:
The alarm on my iPhone woke me up at 7:45, after a very restful night.
A quick shower later, I went down to the mess for breakfast. Again, two eggs sunny side up with a nice slab of bacon followed by a toast with Nutella. The first mate joined me for breakfast and had a special dish made with lots of veggies.
It looked that appetizing that I asked Sergio to make me one for tomorrow morning.
After my second cup of coffee (instant Nescafe but OK), I went up to the bridge to send my position on the Spot. The captain was on the bridge and showed me the weather forecast for the next few days. Maybe some more wind and bigger seas in three days from now but really nothing to worry about. The computer model showed the tropical storm in the mid-Atlantic that was moving NE from the Cape Verde islands, but it would probably fizzle once it gets further north into colder waters. No effect whatsoever on us.
I checked the emails this morning but no response from the “Admiral”. It was 10:00 Chicago time and knowing her, she might still be asleep late on a Sunday.
I will check again later but, while I have a connection, I sent her another update and wrote an email to the children and to my friend and business partner, Maria, in Antwerp to tell her that I am still expected around 06:00 on September 11. She will pick me up at the ship, bring me to the Marine Police in Antwerp to clear immigration and, the following day her boyfriend, Bob, and I will be driving to Italy to join the flotilla.
The emails have been sent and it is time for my routine to go up and down the stairs a few times for my daily on-board exercise and then back to the cabin to read a bit before lunch.
Emilio had a nice pea soup waiting followed by sautéed potatoes and chicken wings in a creamy tarragon sauce. As a side dish there were asparagus spears rolled into a slice of ham followed by a slice of cheese and oven roasted to melt the cheese. Delicious! I will try to duplicate this at home.
The Captain was there for lunch together with the First Mate and one of the engineers. We had a bit of small talk about the ship and other light subjects.
The server, an always smiling Filipino, brought dessert…. Ice cream on which he poured real liquid Belgian chocolate. Dear “Admiral” would have a fit seeing me indulge. I don’t think that diet thing will work on this trip. The Captain said that this was Emilio’s first stint on this ship.
Apparently, the previous cook’s food was not very popular and, because of his reputation as the best cook in the company, the announcement that Sergio would replace him was very well received by the officers.
Time to go back to the cabin and see if I can connect to the Internet and then the afternoon nap.
I finally figured out how to download the pictures from my iPhone to my new Windows laptop. I kind of regret my MacBook Pro. So much easier to work with.
I spent most of the rest of the afternoon putting together video presentations of my trip.
Six o’clock and it is time for dinner. Emilio has prepared a light meal of broiled seabass accompanied by a Mediterranean (of course) salad. No rice, no potatoes.
After dinner I head back up to the bridge where I spend an hour chatting with the Luka, the First Mate, who’s watch ends at 20:00. He will be back on at 04:00 tomorrow morning. He explains to me the display showing all the ships functions and all looks clear. Nothing at all on the radar and we have over 14,000 feet of water underneath us. Spot position sent. I still have not received any confirmation from the heartland that they are actually receiving them.
Time to go back to the cabin, check some emails, play with the computer and read my books, then crash for the night.
